We provide expert testimony in utility rate cases across the U.S and part of Canada. In Illinois Commerce Commission, Docket 09-0306, et al, Ameren Illinois proposed new rates that would have raised some individual industrial customers' delivery costs by over 1000 percent. These exorbitant increases were the result of a combination of factors, including overall revenues requested and a major reallocation of costs to the industrial customers' rates.

Approach

We assisted the industrial intervenor group (Illinois Industrial Energy Consumers, or IIEC) in opposing these rates through expert testimony on: (1) utility revenue requirements, including return on equity; (2) class cost of service, including allocation disputes; (3) revenue allocation, including a reasonable rate moderation plan; and (4) rate design, including a proposal for combined billing of multiple meters. We also assisted in developing discovery, and in other litigation steps.

Results

Our experts developed and successfully defended solid testimony in the case. In its final order, the Illinois Commerce Commission acknowledged our positions on several issues and adopted many of them. As a result of the IIEC's successful intervention, the final approved rates were much more reasonable, and increased the intervention group's average costs by less than 7 percent, rather than the Ameren proposed average increase to the group of nearly 120 percent. This reduction from proposed rates represents a savings of over $10 million per year for the overall client group.